Color reference

#636B6B color reference

Mid-light Neutral

This is a mid-light neutral because its OKLCH chroma falls below the deterministic hue-family threshold. Its closest standardized CSS named color is Dim Gray (#696969), measured with straight-line OKLab distance.

Descriptive label
Mid-light Neutral
Recommended text
White · 5.46:1
Relative luminance
0.142296
Build a palette from #636B6B in Palette Generator Convert #636B6B in Color Converter
Formats UI preview Contrast 50–900 scale Harmonies Matches Related colors Color vision Exports

Copyable values

#636B6B in common color formats

Values are calculated from the same opaque sRGB color. Display rounding does not alter the internal calculations.

Color conversions for #636B6B
Format Value Action
HEX #636B6B
RGB rgb(99 107 107)
HSL hsl(180 3.88% 40.39%)
HSV hsv(180 7.48% 41.96%)
HWB hwb(180 38.82% 58.04%)
XYZ D65 color(xyz-d65 0.130565 0.142295 0.159691)
LAB lab(44.5291% -3.1678 -1.1086)
LCH lch(44.5291% 3.3562 199.2887)
OKLAB oklab(52.0918% -0.009392 -0.002846)
OKLCH oklch(52.0918% 0.009814 196.856)

Real-world test

Try #636B6B on interface components

Preview the source as a primary action, subtle status, form treatment, and card surface. Persistent state controls help touch and keyboard users inspect the same normal, hover, and active colors.

Normal state uses #636B6B with white text at 5.46:1.

Action

Primary button

Use the controls above or point to and press the button to inspect its visual states.

Status

Subtle alert badge

A 12% source tint over white provides the background; readable text is selected separately.

Ready for review

Form

Border and focus ring

Source ring on white: 5.46:1 · meets the 3:1 non-text threshold where applicable.

Surface

Card component

The selected state becomes the card surface with its strongest black-or-white text pairing.

Design system Color decision ready Review states and surrounding surfaces before shipping.

Accessibility diagnostics

WCAG contrast for exact color pairs

Each result applies only to the named foreground, background, text size, and requirement. It is not a complete accessibility or component-conformance claim.

Source #636B6B Exact pair assessment Results for source text on white appear below.

On white

5.46:1

  • Pass AA normal text · 4.5:1
  • Fail AAA normal text · 7:1
  • Pass AA large text · 3:1
  • Pass UI/non-text where applicable · 3:1
Source #636B6B Exact pair assessment Results for source text on black appear below.

On black

3.85:1

  • Fail AA normal text · 4.5:1
  • Fail AAA normal text · 7:1
  • Pass AA large text · 3:1
  • Pass UI/non-text where applicable · 3:1

Use guidance

What this color may be suitable for

Pass in a tested context

Normal-sized text

#636B6B reaches 5.22:1 on Hue Codex paper, meeting WCAG AA for normal text in that exact pairing.

Potential fit

Controls and interface graphics

Against Hue Codex paper, the color reaches 5.22:1. That meets the 3:1 color-contrast threshold where WCAG 1.4.11 applies, but states, shape, and non-color cues still need review.

Readable pairing available

Colored surface or button fill

White text provides the stronger black/white pairing on #636B6B at 5.46:1. This validates only that text pair, not hover, focus, disabled, or adjacent-color states.

Restrained neutral

Palette role

Its OKLCH chroma of 0.0098 is restrained, which is generally more suitable for surfaces, borders, or neutral system roles than for a vivid accent.

Pair available

Color used as foreground

The stronger black/white background is white at 5.46:1. Always retest against the actual rendered background and text size.

Tested backgrounds

Foreground pairing comparison

#636B6B foreground contrast on tested backgrounds
Pair Background Contrast ratio
White#FFFFFF 5.46:1
Hue Codex paper#FBFAF5 5.22:1
Soft neutral#F2EFE6 4.75:1
Black#000000 3.85:1
Hue Codex ink#10212B 3.02:1
Check #636B6B on another background in Contrast Checker

Design-system starting point

A perceptual 50–900 reference scale

The source color is preserved at the nearest lightness step. Other swatches keep its OKLCH hue, moderate chroma toward the extremes, and reduce chroma only when needed to remain in sRGB.

50
100
200
300
400 #8C9494
500
600 #636B6B Source
700
800
900

This is a Hue Codex reference scale, not a claim that the values match Tailwind, Material, or another framework’s named palette.

Adjust the #636B6B scale in Tints, Shades & Tones

Color relationships

Complementary, analogous, and triadic colors

Hue rotations use OKLCH while preserving lightness and requested chroma. When a rotated result falls outside sRGB, chroma is reduced deterministically and disclosed.

Hue relationships are not meaningful for this near-neutral color

Its OKLCH chroma is too low for hue rotation to produce a trustworthy complementary or triadic recommendation. Use the lightness scale or pair it with a deliberately selected accent instead.

Explore #636B6B in Color Harmonies

Distance matching

Closest standardized and framework colors

Matches use straight-line OKLab distance ×100. A smaller value means the coordinates are closer in this model; it is not a claim that two tokens are interchangeable in a design system.

CSS named color

Dim Gray

#696969

OKLab distance ×100: 0.98

Tailwind v4 default

zinc-500

oklch(55.2% 0.016 285.938)

OKLab distance ×100: 3.62 · sRGB preview #71717B

Print boundary

Pantone match not estimated

Reliable print matching needs licensed reference data plus a defined ink, paper, profile, and viewing condition.

Read the print methodology

Color-vision screening

Approximate color-vision-deficiency views

These encoded-sRGB matrix previews are screening approximations. They help reveal possible color-only distinctions but do not reproduce every person’s vision or establish accessibility conformance.

Original#636B6B
Approx.

Protanopia

Red-vision deficiency approximation

Original#636B6B
Approx.

Deuteranopia

Green-vision deficiency approximation

Original#636B6B
Approx.#636B6B

Tritanopia

Blue-yellow deficiency approximation

Original#636B6B
Approx.#696969

Achromatopsia

Monochromatic-vision approximation

Test #636B6B with a complete palette in the CVD Simulator

Ready to use

Copy framework-ready color tokens

Exports preserve the source, readable foreground, and generated 50–900 scale. Tailwind v4 CSS-first and Tailwind v3 JavaScript-config formats are labeled separately.

CSS custom properties

Semantic aliases and the complete 50–900 scale.

:root {
  --color-primary: #636B6B;
  --color-on-primary: #FFFFFF;
  --color-primary-oklch: oklch(52.0918% 0.009814 196.856);
  --color-primary-50: #F1F6F6;
  --color-primary-100: #D9DFDF;
  --color-primary-200: #BFC6C6;
  --color-primary-300: #A5ACAC;
  --color-primary-400: #8C9494;
  --color-primary-500: #747C7C;
  --color-primary-600: #636B6B;
  --color-primary-700: #484F4F;
  --color-primary-800: #333939;
  --color-primary-900: #202525;
}

Tailwind v4 CSS-first theme

Current @theme syntax for bg-brand, text-brand, and scale utilities.

@import "tailwindcss";

@theme {
  --color-brand: #636B6B;
  --color-brand-foreground: #FFFFFF;
  --color-brand-50: #F1F6F6;
  --color-brand-100: #D9DFDF;
  --color-brand-200: #BFC6C6;
  --color-brand-300: #A5ACAC;
  --color-brand-400: #8C9494;
  --color-brand-500: #747C7C;
  --color-brand-600: #636B6B;
  --color-brand-700: #484F4F;
  --color-brand-800: #333939;
  --color-brand-900: #202525;
}

Tailwind v3 / legacy config

CommonJS theme.extend.colors for JavaScript-config projects.

module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        brand: {
          '50': '#F1F6F6',
          '100': '#D9DFDF',
          '200': '#BFC6C6',
          '300': '#A5ACAC',
          '400': '#8C9494',
          '500': '#747C7C',
          '600': '#636B6B',
          '700': '#484F4F',
          '800': '#333939',
          '900': '#202525',
          DEFAULT: '#636B6B',
          foreground: '#FFFFFF',
        },
      },
    },
  },
};

Sass variables

Semantic source, foreground, OKLCH, and scale variables.

$color-primary: #636B6B;
$color-on-primary: #FFFFFF;
$color-primary-oklch: oklch(52.0918% 0.009814 196.856);
$color-primary-50: #F1F6F6;
$color-primary-100: #D9DFDF;
$color-primary-200: #BFC6C6;
$color-primary-300: #A5ACAC;
$color-primary-400: #8C9494;
$color-primary-500: #747C7C;
$color-primary-600: #636B6B;
$color-primary-700: #484F4F;
$color-primary-800: #333939;
$color-primary-900: #202525;

Modern color-mix()

Static fallbacks followed by OKLab tint and shade declarations.

:root {
  --color-primary: #636B6B;
  --color-primary-tint: #BFC6C6;
  --color-primary-tint: color-mix(in oklab, var(--color-primary) 72%, white);
  --color-primary-shade: #484F4F;
  --color-primary-shade: color-mix(in oklab, var(--color-primary) 82%, black);
}

JSON design data

Source formats, readable text, and the generated scale.

{
    "name": "Mid-light Neutral",
    "hex": "#636B6B",
    "rgb": "rgb(99 107 107)",
    "oklch": "oklch(52.0918% 0.009814 196.856)",
    "recommendedText": "#FFFFFF",
    "scale": {
        "50": "#F1F6F6",
        "100": "#D9DFDF",
        "200": "#BFC6C6",
        "300": "#A5ACAC",
        "400": "#8C9494",
        "500": "#747C7C",
        "600": "#636B6B",
        "700": "#484F4F",
        "800": "#333939",
        "900": "#202525"
    }
}

Continue the decision

Use #636B6B in a complete workflow

Reference values are a starting point. Test the color in its real role, background, states, typography, and surrounding palette before shipping.

Adjust #636B6B in Color PickerStart with this exact color and white as the working background for role and accessibility decisions. Build a palette from #636B6B in Palette GeneratorUse this exact HEX as the seed for a deterministic, role-based palette. Check #636B6B on white in Contrast CheckerStart with this color as the foreground and white as the background, then test the real pair.